Hot Consumer Stocks To Buy For 2015

Hot Consumer Stocks To Buy For 2015: Monsanto Co (MON)

Monsanto Company (Monsanto), incorporated on February 9, 2000, along with its subsidiaries, is a provider of agricultural products for farmers. The Company's seeds, biotechnology trait products, and herbicides provide farmers with solutions that improve productivity, reduce the costs of farming, and produce better foods for consumers and better feed for animals. It manages business in two segments: Seeds and Genomics, and Agricultural Productivity. In April 2010, the Company completed the acquisition of a corn and soybean processing plant located in Paine, Chile from Anasac, a company that provides seed processing services. In October 2009, the Company completed the acquisition of Seminium, S.A. (Seminium), a corn seed company. In February 2011, the Company acquired Divergence, Inc. In September 2011, the Company acquired Beeologics. In June 2012, the Company purchased a planting technology developer, Precision Planting, Inc. In January 2013, it purchased select assets of Agradis, Inc. In June 2013, Monsanto Company acquired GrassRoots Biotechnology Inc. In November 2013, the Company announced that it has completed the acquisition of The Climate Corporation.

Seeds and Genomics Segment

Through the Company's Seeds and Genomics segment, it produces seed brands, including DEKALB, Asgrow, Deltapine, Seminis and De Ruiter, and it develops biotechnology traits that assist farmers in controlling insects and weeds. It also provides other seed companies with genetic material and biotechnology traits for their seed brands. It has a global distribution and sales and marketing organization for its seeds and traits. It sells products under Monsanto brands and license technology and genetic material to others for sale under their own brands. Through distributors, independent retailers and dealers, agricultural cooperatives, plant raisers, and agents, it markets DEKALB, Asgrow and Deltapine branded germplasm to farmers globa! lly. In the United States, it markets regional seed brands under it! s American Seeds, LLC and Channel Bio, LLC businesses to farmers directly, as well as through dealers, agricultural cooperatives and agents. It markets and sells trait technologies with branded germplasm, pursuant to license agreements with its farmer customers. In Brazil and Paraguay, its has implemented a point-of-delivery, grain-based payment system. It contracts with grain handlers to collect applicable trait fees when farmers deliver their grain. In addition to selling its products under its own brands, the Company licenses a range of germplasm and trait technologies to large and small seed companies in the United States and certain international markets. Those seed companies in turn market its trait technologies in their branded germplasm; they may also market its germplasm under its own brand name. Its vegetable seeds are marketed in more than 100 countries through distributors, independent retailers and dealers, agricultural cooperatives, plant raisers and agents, as well as directly to farmers.

The Companys row crop seeds brands include DEKALB, Channel Bio, Asgrow and Deltapine. Its DEKALB and Channel Bio are corn hybrids and foundation seed. Its Asgrow are soybean varieties and foundation seed. Its Deltapine are cotton varieties, hybrids and foundation seed. Canola is its row crop variety and hybrid. Its vegetable seed brands are Seminis and De Ruiter. These are open field and protected-culture seed for tomato, pepper, eggplant, melon, cucumber, pumpkin, squash, beans, broccoli, onions, and lettuce, among others. Its Biotechnology traits include SmartStax, YieldGard, YieldGard VT Triple, VT Triple PRO, VT Double PRO, Roundup Ready and Roundup Ready 2 Yield and Genuity. Its SmartStax, YieldGard, YieldGard VT Triple, VT Triple PRO and VT Double PRO have applications for corn, and Bollgard and Bollgard II have application for cotton. It enables crops to protect themselves from borers and rootworm in corn and le! af- and b! ol l-feeding worms in cotton, reducing the need for application! s of inse! cticides. Its Roundup Ready and Roundup Ready 2 Yield have application for soybeans. The Companys Genuity is a global umbrella trait brand. It enables crops, such as corn, soybeans, cotton, and canola to be tolerant of Roundup and other glyphosate-based herbicides. Monsanto also offers farmers stacked-trait products, which are single-seed products in which two or more traits are combined.

Agricultural Productivity Segment

Through the Company's Agricultural Productivity segment, it manufactures Roundup brand herbicides and other herbicides and provide lawn-and-garden herbicide products for the residential market. Its products include Glyphosate-based herbicides, Selective herbicides and Lawn-and-garden herbicides. Its Glyphosate-based herbicides have applications in nonselective agricultural, industrial, ornamental and turf applications for weed control. Its Selective herbicides control preemergent annual grass and small seeded broadleaf weeds in corn and other crops. Its residential lawn-and-garden has applications for weed control. It uses the same distribution and sales and marketing organization for its crop protection products as for its seeds and traits. It also has separate distribution and sales and marketing organizations for its crop protection products. It sells crop protection products through distributors, independent retailers and dealers and agricultural cooperatives. In some cases outside the United States, it sells such products directly to farmers. It also sells certain of the chemical intermediates of its crop protection products to other agricultural chemical producers, who then market their own branded products to farmers. The Company markets its lawn-and-garden herbicide products through The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Mike Deane]

  Before the opening bell on Wednesday, Monsanto Company (MON) reported its Q1 earnings, with sa! les and n! et income coming in higher than last year’s Q1 figures.

  MON Earnings in Brief

  -Monsanto reported Q1 revenue of $3.143 billion, which was up from last year’s Q1 revenue of $2.939 billion.

  -The company’s net income came in at $368 million, or 69 cents per share, up from $339 million, or 63 cents per share, reported last year.

  -MON’s diluted earnings per share from ongoing business came in at 67 cents, which was higher than last year’s same quarter figure of 62 cents.

  -Monsanto beat analysts’ expectations of 64 cents EPS on revenue of $3.08 billion.

  -Monsanto confirmed guidance for the year, and expects EPS in the range of $5 to $5.20.

  CEO Commentary

  Hugh Grant, Monsanto’s chairman and CEO, had the following comments about the company’s earnings report: The first quarter demonstrated that our business performance is squarely on track with several key milestones and that we have the right growth strategy in place. The strength in our business is also seen in the record number of research and development advancements this year. Its the innovation in our pipeline thats going to define whats next for our industry and help deliver on our commitment to bring additional opportunity for farmers around the world.

  No Change to Dividend

  There was no change to Monsanto’s dividend payout mentioned in its quarterly report. This was to be expected as the company most recently raised its quarterly payout from 38 cents to 43 cents in October of 2013, and has a history of raising dividends for its October payout.

  Stock Performance

  Monsanto stock was inactive in Wednesday’s pre-market trading. The stock is currently 3.63% off of its 52-week high.

source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.seekpennystocks.com/hot-consumer-stocks-to-buy-for-2015.html